


Sector XX

by onamonapia



Category: Codename: Kids Next Door
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-12
Updated: 2019-03-12
Packaged: 2019-11-15 22:13:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18081893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onamonapia/pseuds/onamonapia
Summary: Sector XX. The legendary. The brutal. The cold. They were corrupted. And then they disappeared.





	1. Chapter 1

Sector XX.

The legendary.

The brutal.

The unknown.

For years, the mystery of Sector XX rocked the Kids Next Door. The thoughts of an elite, powerful sector destroying the true evils of the world scared and awed children around the globe.

These operatives, handpicked when they were only toddlers, were trained to be weapons. They trained for years before they debuted, seeing horrors that most children were too innocent to even comprehend.

They were corrupted.

And then they disappeared.

* * *

_Shit._

That was the one word in his head. He mouthed it to himself over and over. I'm only eight years old. I'm not supposed to be doing this!

Chasing a target through a storm was one of his least favourite parts of his job.

He pressed himself against a tree and grabbed his gun, a brand new weapon from their 2x4 technology division, if they could even be called that- these weapons were stolen straight from the government.

He clicked the safety off and aimed it into a bush. He knew he saw movement.

"Numbuh 250, you good?" he asked into his helmet's headset.

"Yeah, I think so." He smiled as he heard her voice. "I have visuals."

"Lock in."

"Roger that."

And then a scream.

"Lyla?" he asked. He took off running, adjusting the safety on his gun. "Numbuh 300, you read?"

"Loud and clear," Numbuh 300 panted in response. "I'm coming."

"667?"

"Me too."

"Hurry up."

"What do you think we're doing?"

"Hurry the fuck up," he snapped, before another scream. "Lyla!" he called out, desperate for some sort of response, but got nothing. He finally made it to where he knew their target was.

He saw the long black hair, and knew it was her. Lyla, his best friend, who'd been through everything with him. His rock.

He loved her.

"Lyla," he breathed, aiming his gun, but it was far too late. The blood oozed out of the wound in her head.

The target dropped her body. "Who's next?" The grin he gave chilled the boy to the bone. He had known psychopaths - hell, he would probably be considered one at this point. He had known the scum of society. But he had never been face-to-face with the glee of a murderer.

The boy pulled his weapon back up, feeling the tears pouring down his face. He was not looking for self-defense. He was looking for revenge.

The target sped off in the opposite direction. The boy didn't even think to consider why; he just moved his finger onto the target.

"No." He heard Numbuh 300's voice in his ear, and her hand on his wrist. "Self-defense only."

"But-"

"Self-defense only," she said sharply.

"Lyla." His voice cracked.

"I know. Self-defense only." The third rule. He knew them by heart, but his heart did not care.

She slowly peeled his hand off of the gun, and caught him as he collapsed.

* * *

Wallace Beatles woke up with a jolt, the same way he did every single day ever since.


	2. Chapter 2

"First, we're going to enter the farm through the front entrance-"

Wally tuned Nigel's endless drabble out. He had slept a grand total of two hours the previous night, which was bad, even for him.

"Numbuh 4, are you listening?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah." He lifted his eyes, connecting with Nigel's glare.

"Pay attention! This is a very important and dangerous mission!"

"Sorry," he mumbled. _Yeah, because attacking a brussel sprout farm is so difficult_ , he raged inside his head as the rest of Sector V giggled. He crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat, sighing.

"As I was saying, Numbuh 4, you're going with Numbuh 5 to take out the farmers, while the rest of us destroy the crops. Did you get that, Numbuh 4?"

"Yes," he moaned, rolling his eyes.

"You seem tired," Abby said as they snuck into the farm.

"Stayed up late playing video games. I'm on level 5 now!" He gave what he hoped was a smug grin, but couldn't bring up enough energy to make it as convincing as he knew he could have.

Abby just rolled her eyes. "Dummy," she teased.

Wally smirked. Out of all the members of Sector V, he could be the most like his true self around Numbuh 5. He didn't have to hide behind walls and walls of covers, desperately trying to hide his past.

_Second rule: no one must ever know._

When Sector X had been disbanded, he tried his hardest to leave. The Supreme Leader at the time, Numbuh 100, was insistent.

"Please, just decommission me," he'd practically groveled. But he knew the rules: Sector XX could not be decommissioned. It was far too dangerous.

"Wallace, you're just trying to run. You need to be in the field. It's all you've ever known. Leaving will destroy you."

He hated Numbuh 100.

He knew he was right.

And so he let Numbuh 100 convince him into being put into Sector V, wearing a shell of a violent, impulsive idiot. No one would believe that someone as dumb as him could ever be in Sector XX.

He resented it.

The entered the barn, where they knew the farmers were working. They snuck behind a giant bale of hay, holding their 2x4 technology.

"Well, you know, Jim, I think our crops will be better this year than ever before!"

"Right you are! The weather this year has been perfect-"

Abby wrinkled her nose as they eavesdropped. "Numbuh 5 thinks we need to get these people out of here."

Wally fiddled with his weapon.

"Numbuh 4? Are you in there?"

"Huh?" He looked up.

Numbuh 5 chuckled. "Somebody needs a nap."

"Nuh-uh! I can beat their cruddy butts better than you!"

"Wanna bet?"

"Yeah! Five lollipops!"

"You're on." They shook on it.

After a dramatic battle, and deciding that their side competition was a tie, they went to join their fellow teammates in the crops. It was an epic battle, considering it was completely about brussel sprouts.

They collapsed back at the treehouse, exhausted and covered in mud.

"Good mission, team," Nigel said. "Even if some of us weren't listening to the plan."

Wally resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Hey, I did fine!"

"Numbuh 362 will be here to debrief with us. This was a very important mission for the Kids Next Door. The adults' supply of brussel sprouts has gone down significantly, thanks to our work today…."

And Wally zoned out again.

As the Supreme Leader, Rachel had knowledge of all of the former members of Sector XX, along with the basic run-down of its history. Fanny had accidentally gained some knowledge of it as well, when she attempted to decommission Sector V and found that she couldn't decommission Wally.

Supreme Leaders tended to be more mature than the average kid. Wally had been through quite a few of them during his years in the Kids Next Door, and he'd never seen one that he would consider dumb. He tended to find them annoying, mostly because none of them would remove him from active field work and put him into something more more well-suited for his messed up mind, like the other two remaining members.

When Rachel walked in and saw the sector completely disheveled, she sighed. "I assume it was successful, Numbuh 1?"

"Oh, yes, very. We cleared the whole place."

"Good work, Sector V." She smiled.

"We had Numbuhs 4 and 5 take care of the farmers themselves while the rest of us could figure out how to dismantle their crazy technology. It was a good system."

"It seems to work well." She stopped and looked over the team. "Any comments from the rest of you all?"

Her eyes rested momentarily on Wally. He raised his eyebrows.

The three year anniversary was the next week.

She knew that he was not ready. He would never admit that to her.

"Nothing?"

"We can discuss more over lunch," Nigel suggested.

"Yeah!" the sector exclaimed. Wally groaned internally.

He managed to avoid her for most of the day. It was only when he left to go refill his glass that he failed.

"I need some more too. I must be dehydrated." Rachel got up at the same timel, and followed him into the kitchen.

"Subtle," Wally muttered, opening the fridge.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine. I was fine last year, wasn't I?"

"I wasn't here last time. Numbuh 274 told me you screwed up every mission for a month."

"I have to do something to keep myself entertained around here."

"The bags under your eyes say otherwise."

"I stayed up late playing video games. Just like the rest of the kids here."

"Wallace. What happened was a tragedy. At least take the day off this year instead of taking it out on everyone."

"You don't know what a tragedy is," Wally said, dropping his voice and adding a chilling edge to it. "Once you go through something more traumatic than your parents telling you to eat a piece of broccoli at dinner, then you can let me know how I should be handling my emotions." He grabbed his glass of soda, slammed the door to the fridge, and returned to the room, putting on a neutral mask.


	3. Chapter 3

Wally awoke at midnight, drenched in sweat.

The anniversary.

He sighed as he rubbed his eyes. It had already been three full years. Three years since Lyla was murdered because of his plan as sector leader. Three years since Sector XX had been disbanded. Three years since he had spent decent time with the only people who'd understand.

"Fuck," he said out loud into the darkness. It was only midnight. He had a long day ahead of him.

He slowly sat up and pulled himself to his feet. He opened the door into the main hallway of the treehouse.

He was so alone.

The only other two members of Sector XX still active in the Kids Next Door both worked on the Moonbase. It was dangerous for them to be seen together, anyways - why would a member of Sector V, a janitor, and a mechanic be talking?

He looked at the door with the "5" on it. Abby was the person he trusted the most in Sector V…

He couldn't. Rule two.

He shook the idea from his head and trudged into the kitchen.

"What you doing up so late?"

He did not expect to find Abby there.

"Uh… water. Was thirsty." He grabbed a cup and filled it in the sink. "Goodnight." He turned to leave.

"Numbuh 4, wait a second."

He turned back around. "What?"

"You seem… off."

Wally put on a fake confused face. "What do you mean? I'm always on! Ready to fight some-"

"Not what I meant, and I think you know that."

He closed his eyes and sighed. "I just can't fall asleep, okay?" He tried to sound as annoyed as possible.

"Why not?"

He shrugged. "Dunno."

"Here. I'll make you some hot chocolate." Abby got up from her seat.

"Don't waste your time. Nothing will help. Believe me; I tried." He was letting his cover down. He couldn't stop himself. He was too tired, too stressed to keep up a full personality.

"You haven't tried Numbuh 5's world famous hot chocolate. Sit."

He reluctantly climbed onto a stool, accidentally slamming his cup of water on the counter. He tried to keep himself from swearing out loud.

"Do you have something on your mind?" Abby asked.

"Just how tired I am," Wally snapped.

Abby sighed. He felt a bit of guilt, but not enough to apologize.

She placed a mug in front of him. "Drink up."

He touched the handle and sighed. Lyla's specialty was hot chocolate. It was so dumb, but he almost broke down.

It had been three years. He should be over it by now.

"Are you okay?" Abby asked. He'd completely forgotten she was there.

"I told you, I'm fine!" he snapped. "God. Just leave me alone!" He stormed back into his bedroom and slammed the door.

Abby stared back at him, perplexed.

* * *

The next morning, the sector boarded the school bus together. Wally did not say one word. He could not bring up the energy or willpower to interject anything, even when they were talking about the new Yipper cards or whatever topic they were going off about.

He took his seat next to Kuki. He knew Kuki had a massive crush on him. He knew everyone thought he had one for her. He couldn't handle her immaturity and innocence. He was going to corrupt her if he got any closer.

"Numbuh 4! Did you do all your homework?" She beamed as she showed her math worksheet, done in various colours.

"No. Why would I do my cruddy homework?" It was boring anyways. He already knew all the information. One of the perks of being a former member of Sector XX.

"Numbuh 4," Kuki whined. "You're going to get a bad grade!"

He shrugged. "I don't need no cruddy school."

"If you don't start working, they're not going to let you pass sixth grade!"

Wally frowned and sat back in the seat. He crossed his arms. He could pass, that's for sure. He was pretty sure he could probably skip to ninth grade and be fine.

Curse Sector XX's schooling.

"She's right," Hoagie stepped in.

Wally sighed. He was not in the mood for lecturing from a bunch of immature idiots. He knew how to handle himself. He'd had no sleep the night before, the day was bringing back so many memories-

"...they're going to hold you back."

He hadn't even realized he'd started spacing out. "I'll pass. I'm not stupid or anything." _Keep the mask up, keep it up…_

Only a couple more minutes until he could get lost in the chaos of the middle school hallways. Sure, he had class with Abby, but he could avoid her.

"He's not gonna listen," Abby butted in. "Anyways, what do you think we're gonna do in gym today?"

Wally said a silent "thank you" to Abby, even though he was mad at her, and mad at himself for screaming at her earlier that morning.

The other members of Sector XX went to the same school. They never spoke. They couldn't without any risk. But that was the one day they broke the rules.

Numbuh 300, also known as Janet, was standing next to his locker. He opened it carefully, taking out a notebook.

"Today's the day," she said. Her height made her intimidating to all the other children walking by. She was the oldest of the remaining kid-aged members of the sector at twelve years old.

"Yeah," Wally said. He slowly shut the locker, glad that he'd escaped his countless friends.

"Three years."

"I can count too," he snapped.

"Jesus. Calm down."

"I'm calm." He rolled his eyes. They walked slowly through the hallway. "Where's Jeremy?"

"Triple six's probably late. I have math with him, and he's never been on time."

Wally smirked. "Classic."

"I'm here, I'm here." Jeremy ran up to them, panting. "Weird, huh Numbuh 4? We're all in middle school now."

"Yeah, it's been like that for the past three months."

"Exactly. But we never talk. Good to see you, Four."

"You too, Triple Six."

"Hey, I'm Numbuh 667."

"If you choose a numbuh one off from the number of the beast, you're in for a bad time." Janet rolled her eyes. "So shut up."

They walked in silence, each others' presence a reminder of the day.

"How's active duty?" Janet asked.

"Boring. How's 2x4 tech?"

"Too easy. Jeremy, how's sweeping?"

"Calming. Relaxing. Meditative. My favourite."

He wasn't being sarcastic.

"I can't believe that a member of the legendary Sector XX now works at the Moon Base as a janitor."

"Cleaning up your crap! Do you know how long it took to clean up all that salt after you guys crashed your ship right into the pretzel shop?!"

"We saved your butts."

"From what? Our candy being taken?" Janet rolled her eyes.

"Yeah. It saved us a few dollars and trips to the candy store. Worth it, in my opinion." Wally sighed. No matter how long he'd been working with Sector V, it never stopped feeling stupid.

"Where's the rest of your sector, anyways?" Jeremy looked around. "The famous, legendary Sector V. Our saviors! Where could they be?!"

"Shut it," Wally hissed. "I have class with Numbuh 5 next. We can't be seen together."

"The worst member of Sector V doesn't want to be seen with a lowly janitor. I'm hurt."

Wally rolled his eyes and slipped into class, taking his seat next to Abby.

"Where were you?" she asked immediately.

"Got lost." He was dumb enough that she didn't question it.


	4. Chapter 4

The day was a daze.

By the time Wally got on the bus home, his brain appeared to have turned into mush and his body had become a robot.

He sat silently, letting the excited voices float around him. It took Hoagie nudging him for him to notice that they had to get off.

"I have to watch my brother tonight," he blurted. "See ya tomorrow." He turned on his heel and walked down the street before any of the rest of them could react.

"Numbuh 4's sure acting weird," Kuki said.

Abby nodded. "Something's up with him."

But, in standard kid form, they quickly forgot and decided to play video games instead.

Wally sighed as he collapsed in his bed. He wished desperately that he had a photo, or a video, or some sort of memento of her. But there were none.

_Rule 2: no one must ever know._

That rule, despite it not being the primary rule, was the one taken most seriously by Sector XX and the higher ups in the Kids Next Door. Everything they did focused on secrecy. Ever since they were picked to join the sector at age 3, it was drilled in their head constantly.

And that meant no relics of that time.

Nobody even knew he knew her.

Nobody knew his grief.

Field operatives for Sector XX were selected at the age of 3. Potential candidates were watched discreetly for months before an official test was given. Only one per age group was chosen, and those picked would undergo tremendous training for four years until they were placed on the field at the age of seven.

They never had a chance to learn anything differently.

Their minds were filled with tactics and rules. They were taught the horrors of the world long before any normal child. They practically embraced danger, and going after true evils that could end in their deaths.

But no one ever died until her.

He could barely remember training - he was so young. But he remembered the first time he met her. He couldn't even remember what the circumstances were, or what they were being trained in at the time.

It was one of her first days of training. Wally had already been there for about a year. But he had not yet broken out of his shell. He was terrified and shy, only going through the motions before hiding.

But Lyla was different. She walked right up to him on her first day. "My name is Lyla. What's your name?"

"W-wallace," he stuttered.

"I'm new and I know you're not. You're older than me. But we're going to be best friends!"

And she was right.

He wished that he could envision that smile and that joy whenever he thought of her. But, instead, all that appeared in his head was her gruesome death.

Their sector was something of a myth in the Kids Next Door - inevitably, some things got leaked, but most of it was limited to their name and that they were the best there ever was. But once the sector got disbanded immediately after Lyla's death, most of the rumours died down. Now, they were mostly mentioned sarcastically - a quip of "What are you, in Sector XX or something?" when someone was being too obnoxious and braggy.

Very few held on to believing that there ever was a Sector XX.

The remaining field agents of the sector had been split up and sent to different jobs in the Kids Next Door - they couldn't be decommissioned for security reasons, and they had known no other world. Only three of the field operatives were still under the age of 13: Wally, Janet, and Jeremy. There were two others who were moved to be undercover teenagers once they hit their thirteenth birthday, but their jobs in the KND were also small and overwhelmingly depressing - one had worked as a field medic for one of the least active sectors in the entire organization, and the other worked for decommissioning, just pressing the buttons. It was a sad existence, and even sadder given what they had come from.

* * *

Wally hadn't noticed that he had drifted off to sleep until he heard the quiet beeping of his communicator.

"Whaddyawant?" he mumbled into the walkie-talkie.

"Numbuh 4." It was the crisp voice of Rachel.

He sighed. "What now?" he mumbled.

"Just checking if you're okay."

"You're lying. What do you want?"

He heard a loud sigh from the other end.

"Fuck. What is it?"

"Must you use adult language?"

"You think I give a shit about a few curse words? What is it?"

"Numbuh 1 wants to have an immediate meeting with me and you."

"Nope."

"He's concerned about your performance as of late."

"Nope."

"Wally." Rachel sighed into the receiver again, and Wally was too tired to argue. "Please take some time off this year. This is even worse than last year. I think you need therapy. This is just eating away at you. You need help."

"I'm fine. Rule 2."

"Rule 2?"

"No one must ever know. Just chill, Rachel. I'll be back to normal tomorrow."

"If you say so. I already told Numbuh 1 that you were too busy to make it, so expect an interrogation tomorrow."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He hung up the communicator and tossed it down his bed.

* * *

He barely made it out of bed the next morning.

When he finally lumbered into the kitchen, still wearing the same clothes from the other day, he begged his parents to let him stay home from school. He claimed a stomachache.

"You don't feel warm," his mother said, putting a hand on his forehead.

"Please," he pleaded. "I really don't feel good." He looked at her, barely needing to make himself cry. His eyes were nearly full of tears already.

"What, you got a test you didn't study for or something?" his father grumbled, barely paying attention.

"No, I just-"

"No fever, no staying home. Final." His father took a sip from his coffee and made eye contact, as if to challenge him.

Wally sighed and turned around. He splashed cold water onto his face, trying to minimize the puffiness, and hoped that he could handle it.

He wasn't even sure why it was so bad this year. He didn't remember things going as poorly last year.

He boarded the bus and took his usual spot next to Kuki.

"Where were you yesterday?" Nigel immediately demanded.

"Told you. Watching my brother." He didn't turn to look at him.

"Will you be here this afternoon? Or are you going to be 'busy' again?"

"Still busy. My brother needs a sitter."

"Oh really."

The bus pulled up to the school. Wally stood up immediately. "Sorry that I find your silly demands less important than making sure my two-year-old brother isn't abandoned at home alone," he snapped before pushing his way out of the bus.

Nigel glared after him.

"I've never seen him like that before," Hoagie said.

"Something's up." Abby shook her head. "I tried to ask him what's wrong, and he just said he hadn't been sleeping well."

"It's gotta be more than that," Hoagie responded.

"I bet he's a traitor," Nigel spat.

Abby looked at him. "You outta your mind? No way."

"He called our work 'silly'."

"No, he called your overreaction to everything silly." Abby shook her head. "He's probably going through something stressful and doesn't want to tell us yet. Just give him space. He'll come around."

Nigel frowned as they stepped off the bus and walked inside. "I don't want a possible traitor in our sector."

"He's not being a good friend," Kuki said sadly.

"Yeah, he's gone from being grumpy to outright _nasty_. I definitely don't want to hang out with him right now."

"Which is how we know that something's wrong. We should just give him some space."

"I'm trying to get him to meet with me and Numbuh 362. He's been messing up missions and barely paying attention for weeks now!"

"So, what, you wanna add to the stress? That's just gonna make him worse. I say give him some time off and let him come back when he's ready."

Hoagie shook his head. "He would be so angry if we tried that."

Abby shrugged. "I don't know about that. Let's just tell him we're here for him and give him some space. He'll come around."

Nigel sighed. "I'll talk to Numbuh 362."

* * *

Wally stormed through the school and nearly slammed his locker shut.

"Jesus."

He turned around sharply. "What do you want?" he hissed at Janet. "We're not supposed to be talking!"

"Just overheard your friends saying how nasty you were and how they think you're a traitor."

"You think I don't know what they think?! Rule two. Go away."

"Your cover is dropping."

"Shoo!"

"Watch it," Janet warned before slipping into the crowd.

He rolled his eyes and slammed his locker shut. He took his seat in class next to Abby.

"I'm gonna give you space. But you need anything, you talk to me, okay?"

"Whatever." He knew he was being an ass. But that didn't mean he apologized when she simply sighed sadly.


	5. Chapter 5

Rachel banged on Wally's door that night.

"What?" he snapped.

"I'm just being a concerned friend."

"Go be concerned somewhere else."

"Wallace."

"Wow, full name. Must be important."

"Let's have a meeting with Numbuh 1. I'm going to put you on a temporary break from active duty."

"Just decommission me."

"You know I can't do that."

He glared at her. "Goodbye."

"Wally, wait."

He paused his attempt at slamming the door.

"I want to have that meeting with Numbuh 1. He's freaking out thinking you're some sort of traitor. I've tried telling him you're not, but you know him."

"Just tell him harder. Goodbye."

"Get out here." Rachel grabbed his arm and pulled him outside. "You know as well as I do that there's only so much covering I can do for you before people start to get suspicious."

"So decommission me."

"Wallace! Stop!" She shook her head. "Let's go have that meeting with Numbuh 1 in the Treehouse. You can explain how you've just been having a bad time, and come up with whatever lie you want. I can suggest you take a break for a while, until you put yourself back together and get some sort of therapy. Then you can agree, since we both know you absolutely hate being on active duty. Then you can work on yourself and stop being a disaster."

"I'd rather you just took me off of active duty forever."

"No can do and you know it."

Wally frowned.

"Let's go. Come on."

The walk to the Treehouse was silent. When they walked inside, they immediately went to the meeting room. Nigel glared at Wally as they walked in, and Wally returned it as he and Rachel sat down at the table.

"It's obvious he's a traitor," Nigel started with.

Rachel sighed. "How?"

"Messing up missions, acting like a _teenager_ … the signs are all there!"

"Everyone messes up missions. How is he acting like a teenager?"

"Moody, being mean to all of us, and calling our work 'silly'."

"I don't think those are obvious signs that he's a traitor. Numbuh 5 even said that she thinks he's going through something stressful." She turned to Wally. "Sorry for talking about you like you're not here."

"He doesn't deserve apologies. He's a traitor!"

"Numbuh 1, stop referring to your teammate as a traitor." She shook her head. "Numbuh 4, if you want to tell us what's bothering you, I can assure you that it will never leave this room. Right, Numbuh 1?"

Nigel folded his arms and glared.

"Numbuh 1, need I remind you that not only are you sector leader, but you're his friend. Be a friend."

Nigel sighed. "Alright. Let's hear it."

Rachel turned to look at him. He could see in her eyes that she was begging him to not mess this up.

He cleared his throat. "Uh." For once in his life, lying did not come easy. He desperately wanted to blurt out, "I killed my best friend. It's my fault she's dead." But of course he couldn't do that.

Rachel raised her eyebrows.

Wally stood up abruptly. "I can't." He shook his head and turned to leave.

"Wally, wait," Rachel tried.

"Just take me off of active duty." He left the room.

Rachel sighed.

"I think that's proof enough that he's a traitor."

"I know for a fact that he isn't. He just doesn't want to say what's bothering him, and after you accuse him of being a traitor, I can understand why. Take him off of missions for at least a week. He needs the break." She stood up. "I'll go tell him."

She ran after him in the streets.

"Go away," Wally muttered.

"Please get help," Rachel pleaded. "I've never seen you mess up like that."

"You think I don't know?!" he snapped. "There are so many things I could have said! My entire life is based on lying and covers and everything!"

"Ask your parents for therapy or something, I don't know. But you can't deal with this on your own!"

"I'm fine most of the time," he mumbled.

"No you're not. You just bottle things up until you explode, like you are right now. It's unhealthy."

"Being forced to do the job of police officers at the age of seven is unhealthy!"

"Yes, I know. That was a bad decision on the part of the Kids Next Door. I'm sorry."

Nigel was watching this interaction through the Treehouse window. He couldn't hear anything, but it did look like Wally was visibly upset.

"It's too late for 'sorry'. We were all fucked up. Lyla's _dead_ because of the Kids Next Door. And because of me."

"It wasn't your fault."

"It was!" Wally nearly yelled at her. "Fuck off! Stop telling me this bullshit!" He stormed off. "I swear, if you fucking follow me, I will shank you."

Rachel sighed. She turned back to the Treehouse.

"He seems really upset," Nigel noted as she walked in.

Rachel nodded. "Yeah. He is. Take him off of missions until further notice."

"Is he okay?"

Rachel shook her head. "No. He's really not. And accusing him of being a traitor did not help things."

"Why are you trying to protect him? You barely know him!"

"As Supreme Leader, there are some things I know about members of the Kids Next Door that nobody else knows. Not even you know all of the things about your team members."

* * *

Wally was in _hell_.

Normally, he busied himself enough that he could ignore what he'd done. But he could no longer do that.

And that scared him.

He knew Rachel was right. He needed therapy. He needed something.

He needed it to end.

He shook the dark thoughts from his head. No, I can't kill myself, he thought bitterly. Even if I deserve it.

He was miserable.

He trudged home, barely acknowledging his parents. He went to bed without eating. At least sleep was an escape… until the nightmares began.

He ignored his friends. He sat in the front of the bus, the closest to the front he could manage. Assigned seating meant he couldn't avoid Abby forever in the first class, but he made sure to never even look in her direction. He could see her concerned glances through his peripheral vision. No doubt Nigel had tipped her off to his meltdown.

* * *

The Treehouse was quiet. At their pre-mission debriefing, they could no longer ignore the elephant in the room.

"Numbuh 4 is off of missions until further notice," Nigel started. "For obvious reasons."

"Is he okay?" Kuki asked softly, concern creasing her features.

Nigel shook his head. "I have no idea. I'm still not convinced he hasn't been a traitor this whole time."

"There's no way," Abby said, brushing him off immediately. "Like I said. It's something stressful. If Numbuh 362 said there's no way he's a traitor, then there's no way he's a traitor. Besides, do you really think Numbuh 4 is smart enough to pull that off?"

Nigel sighed. "Probably not. But we can't let our guard down. Anyways, our mission today is a big one. We are working with Global Command on this mission. Since we're down one member, the rest of us will have to pick up the slack. We have found a secret teenager base, stockpiling weapons that we can only assume will be used against us. Our mission is to take down that base and remove all their weapons. It will be tough, but we have the support of Global Command whenever we need it."

"You think we can pull this off with our biggest fighter out?" Hoagie asked quietly.

"We can cover for him. It's not going to be easy, but I think we can do it."

* * *

The mission was a failure.

Even after calling backup, the teenagers were too many for the kids, along with their weapons. They were called to have a meeting with Rachel in her office immediately due to the importance of the mission.

Rachel sighed as the sector stood in front of her desk.

"I understand you guys are down one member, and that this was a hard mission anyways. But this failure is catastrophic." She shook her head. "The teenagers now know that we know where their hideout is, and will most likely move it. We'll have to do more undercover work to find their new base."

"We tried our best," Nigel said.

Rachel sighed. "I don't doubt that."

Suddenly, there was an ear-piercing scream from the computers.

The kids all covered their ears.

"What's that?" Nigel yelled over the cacophony.

"I have no idea!" Rachel ran to the computers and furiously pressed buttons.

The other kids rushed behind her desk to try to help.

"'Level 10 enemy alert'?" Abby read off. "What's that mean?"

"I don't know, but it can't be good." Rachel finally flipped a switch, one that she would never touch, and the alarms stopped.

That switch was meant for Sector XX.

"We should track down that enemy and defeat them!" Nigel declared.

"No," Rachel immediately answered. "You will not be tracking down that enemy. Nobody will. It'd be too dangerous."

"We have the best record in the Kids Next Door. We can handle it!"

"You're saying that as you're standing in my office due to a failed mission. Numbuh 1, I appreciate your passion for the Kids Next Door. But whoever this is is too powerful for anyone in the Kids Next Door to handle. And you will _not_ be going after them." She sighed and sat down at her desk. "You're all dismissed."

As soon as they left her office, Nigel whispered, "We're going after that enemy!"

"Yeah!" the rest of the sector agreed.

* * *

Rachel immediately called Wally.

"I need you and the rest of your former sector in my office immediately."

"What? No!"

"It's important."

"The three of us will not be seen anywhere together. Not even two of us can be seen together. Besides, the whole Kids Next Door knows I'm on a break. They'd be suspicious."

"I think you overestimate the critical thinking skills of kids."

"It only takes one person to break our covers. We will not be going to your office."

"What I want to say is highly confidential."

"I figured."

"And pertinent to your whole sector."

"Obviously."

"So, what am I supposed to do? Tell you all individually? Make time in my schedule for a janitor?"

"Ask him to sweep your office under supervision."

"And a mechanic who specializes in changing tires?"

"Give her an award for being the fastest tire changer."

Rachel sighed. "Just get up here."

"Great. I'll just walk on over."

"Ugh. I'll send someone to pick you up under guise of discussing your break."

After a very awkward ride to the Moon Base with Hoagie, where no words were exchanged, he slipped into her office.

"What's so important?" Wally asked, sitting at one of the chairs in her office - something most operatives would never _dare_ to do.

"My computer alarm system went off today and only turned off when I pressed the switch to alert Sector XX."

Wally stood up immediately. "Who?"

"I don't know. It just said 'Level 10 Enemy'."

"I need access to your computer."

"What? I'm not supposed to let anyone near my computer."

"My credentials can get me into any file and system in the Kids Next Door. Chill." He got behind her desk and entered his finger into the DNA sampling hole. While most kids had to prove their DNA with a booger, he immediately got through without it.

He scrolled through the computer system. "There are very few Level 10s. Those are the worst - we hardly dared to go near them."

"What do they do?"

"You don't want to know."

He clicked a few buttons. "Oh, shit."

"What?"

"It's _him_."

"Who?"

"The reason our sector got disbanded. It's him. The dickhead that killed Lyla."


	6. Chapter 6

"I think Sector V might try to find him."

"What?! How the fuck do they know he exists?"

"They were in my office when the alarm system went off. I couldn't figure out how to turn it off, and they were trying to help. They read the alert, and wanted to go after him."

"Shit." Wally paused. "Reinstate me. I'll keep them from doing anything stupid."

"Are you sure? You don't seem… stable enough for that."

"Would you rather some untrained kids go after one of the worst people the world has ever seen?"

She sighed. "I can put one of the other former members-"

"No. Too dangerous. Reinstate me."

She shook her head. "Fine. Done. I'll let Numbuh 1 know. If anyone asks, we had a long discussion about your recent behavior, and you agreed to try not to be such a jerk anymore. I suggest apologizing to your team too."

Wally rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"And keep me updated. I'll alert the other two former members of the situation as well."

Wally nodded once before leaving the room.

"How'd it go?" Hoagie asked. He was sitting in the food court, sipping on a milkshake.

"I'm back in Sector V."

"Seriously? You've only been on break for, like, a day. And you don't really seem to be in a good enough mood for it. No offense."

"I can handle it!" Wally put his cover back on. His mask, his cover, was a way to distract him… he hoped.

"Are you sure?" he asked cautiously.

"Yeah!"

"Um, alright…"

Wally could tell he couldn't believe him. He wouldn't believe himself either - he was a sullen asshole on the way to the moon; how could he change so rapidly?

He stepped into the Treehouse. "I'm back in," he announced to the lounging kids.

"Are you sure?" Abby asked.

"Yup! Ready to go on some missions-"

"Cut the crud, Wally," Abby interrupted. "We're all worried about you, and this is a big mood change from just yesterday. Are you sure you're okay and ready to be back?"

"As ready as I can be," he said.

Nigel blinked. "Uh, welcome back, Numbuh 4."

He knew he sounded absolutely insane.

Abby sighed. "Well, alright. If Numbuh 362 says so…"

Nigel cleared his throat. "I'd like to have a, er, sector meeting right now. To discuss what we just uncovered."

They gathered in the meeting room. "I could not find any information on villains with levels. But from Numbuh 362's reaction, it is something we weren't supposed to find out. We can help kids everywhere by defeating them!"

"Uh, what are you talking about?" Wally asked.

"Right. You weren't there. Today, we had a meeting with Numbuh 362, and her computer system alarms went off because of a 'Level 10 Enemy Alert'. We don't know what that means, and she didn't seem to either. We need to get to the bottom of this immediately."

"Uh, if Numbuh 362 didn't even know, then how are we supposed to know?"

"We need to do some investigating. I managed to memorize the coordinates, and they are close to here."

Wally bit his tongue before he burst out into cursing.

"We are going to investigate right now."

"Is this really a good idea?" Wally asked.

"You just got reinstated and you don't want to go on the first mission? Pretty suspicious," Nigel said accusingly. "I'd even suggest you know something we don't."

"I don't know anything! I'm just _saying_ -"

"Are you with us or not, Numbuh 4?"

He sighed. "Alright, fine."

* * *

"We're flying over it now," Hoagie said. "Want me to land?"

"Not right now. Let's get an overhead view."

Wally looked out the window. It was a place he knew of - that was the place they were trying to infiltrate on their last mission.

He felt panic rise in his chest. He took a deep breath to try to calm the warning bells in his head, but it didn't help. It just sounded like a shaky sigh.

"You alright?" Abby asked him softly.

He nodded. "I'm good," he replied shakily.

"Are you sure?"

He nodded again, not trusting his voice. He was heading for a panic attack. This was the visual he got in his nightmares before he witnessed the gruesome murder scene, over and over and over. He could even see it right there.

He swallowed and turned back to his weapon control panel. He doubted that he'd have to use it - it wasn't like most adults had powerful, flying ships to attack kids with.

"You don't look too good. Maybe you should take some more time off."

"I told you I'm fine," he hissed back.

Abby sighed.

"Land the ship, Numbuh 2."

Shit.

The ship landed in a big group of trees, well concealed.

"I really don't think we should be doing this," Wally tried to say. It came out shaky and nervous - a voice he very rarely used, and especially not without trying.

Abby took one look at him before agreeing. "Yeah, this doesn't seem right. We're defying Numbuh 362."

"We need to save the Kids Next Door from whatever this is. Now, quiet."

Wally knew he was armed with an actual weapon that could do some damage. But if his six-person, highly trained sector could fail so massively, then there was no way that Sector V could handle it.

They snuck through the bushes and came to a hideout.

They were unarmed. They were untrained.

They were screwed.

"Someone's in there!" Kuki whispered. "Should we go say hi?"

"No! They're the enemy!" Nigel shook his head. "We need to come back when it's unattended. There's no use risking it right now."

Wally breathed a huge sigh of relief.

They piled back into the ship and went back to the Treehouse. The others didn't care at all - they went back to their normal activities of video games, cartoons, and homework.

Wally retreated to his room and lay on the floor, trying to calm his nerves.

He heard a soft knock on the door. "Wally? Can I come in?"

It was Abby. "Sure," he replied.

She opened the door and shut it softly before taking a seat next to him. "I just wanted to see if you're okay."

"I'm fine."

"You looked like you were freaking out during that mission."

"Just nerves. No biggy."

"That's not like you."

Wally closed his eyes and didn't respond.

"We're all worried about you. Even Numbuh 1, even if he doesn't sound like it. And I don't think it's just a sleep problem."

He didn't have enough energy to snap at her. He just wanted to sleep, even if that meant the nightmares would come.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Are you sure? It might make you feel better."

"I can't."

"You can't, or don't want to?"

Shit. He said the wrong thing. Now he sounded suspicious.

"Don't wanna."

"Alright. I won't push you."

He sighed.

"Do you really think you should be back here so soon? I think a break would be good for you."

"Need the distraction."

Abby chuckled. "That's the wisest thing I've ever heard you say."

"I have my moments."

They sat in silence for a few minutes before Wally said he'd better get home, and he collapsed on his bed at home.

* * *

No sooner had he lied down on his bed when he got a notification on his communicator. He picked it up and looked at the screen. "Downtown park. 4pm." There were attached some coordinates.

He looked at the sender's name, but there was none.

He frowned before messaging back. "Who is this?"

"You'll find out," was the response.

He frowned again. But what was the worst that could happen? Them killing him?

There were many more things he was more afraid of.

The coordinates led him directly to two benches, back to back. He sat down at one and waited.

He felt the weight shift slightly behind him. "Numbuh 4."

He recognized that voice immediately. "Numbuh 74.239."

"This is to be completely confidential. Neither of us will say that we were here, or spread any information that is discussed to others."

"Why are we having a confidential meeting in the middle of a park?"

"Logistics."

Wally smirked but said nothing.

"Do you know about the Galactic Kids Next Door?"

"I heard rumours, once upon a time," Wally replied lowly.

"The Galactic Kids Next Door selects the best operative from every planet."

"So why are you talking to me?"

He heard a low chuckle from behind him. "Obviously, you're the best. You're the former head of the best sector to ever exist."

"No," he responded immediately.

"I figured you would say that." Numbuh 74.239 sighed. "So, we have to go to our next pick."

"And that is…?"

"Numbuh 1."

"Of course."

"We need someone who is good at everything the Kids Next Door needs. We need someone who can fight well, lead well, plan well - you know, the works. We've been watching him for a while now, and he seems to be a perfect fit. But you're on the inside. You can tell us information that we haven't been able to get."

Numbuh 74.239 paused there, and Wally sighed. "I don't know what exactly you're looking for me to say. He's fine at all those things. His combat skills are decent, he can command a team easily, and his tactical strategies work well enough for what we do. I'm sure you knew that from your observations."

"But you have some tension with him."

Wally snorted. "Well, he thinks that my recent bad mood is actually me being a traitor, which is absolutely ridiculous."

"So you're saying he jumps to irrational conclusions."

"I suppose I am. He does that quite often. Sometimes he's right. Usually he's very, very wrong."

"Would you say this is a good quality, or a bad quality?"

"Like I said. Sometimes he's right. A lot of the time, he's just delusional. He assumes the worst possibility - not that half the things he assumes are even possible."

"Where would you say his loyalty to the Kids Next Door is?"

"He's loyal to a fault," he answered immediately. "He would do anything for the Kids Next Door. He'd betray his deepest morals at the word of a higher-up. Unless he thinks he can help the Kids Next Door by disobeying, in which case he'll gladly ignore them."

"And that's why we knew we couldn't pick you. Rule one, I hear?"

_Rule one: your loyalties are foremost to your morals, then your sector, then the Kids Next Door._

That was the biggest rule of Sector XX. Though barely said or acknowledged, they knew it by heart. It was very rare that someone used that rule - Wally could only think of a handful of times in the two years he was a field operative. But the implications bore down on them, occasionally forcing them to put themselves and their missions at risk in order to preserve their morals.

"If you're forcing your operatives to break that rule often enough that it's taken into consideration when selecting your operatives, I'm not so sure that the Galactic Kids Next Door is a good thing."

Numbuh 74.239 chuckled. "Of course you would say that. Let me just say that the universe is huge, and different planets have different customs and moral systems that you can't even begin to comprehend."

"Any rational being can come to the same basic moral conclusions. The fact that you're dancing around that says a lot."

"I didn't come here to ask about your opinions on the Galactic Kids Next Door. Clearly, our conversation is over. Thank you for the information, Numbuh 4."

"Clearly, you don't like the truth," he countered, but he felt the bench move again, and he knew that Numbuh 74.239 was gone. He waited five minutes before walking back home.


End file.
